by AllThingsECC.com | Nov 4, 2021 | Comm Center News
Seattle recognizes 911 dispatchers as critical members of the City’s public safety response
Hiring incentives have resulted in 10-fold increase over five-day period for applicants and inquiries for 911 dispatcher positions
SEATTLE (Nov. 4) – Mayor Jenny A. Durkan issued on Oct. 29 an emergency order that provides $10k – $25k hiring bonuses to Seattle Police Officers and to 911 dispatchers at the Community Safety and Communications Center (CSCC). Within five days of declaring the new hiring incentive, the CSCC has seen a 10-fold increase in the number of applicants and inquiries for 911 dispatcher positions. More than 35 applications and inquiries have been received by the CSCC in the five days since the announcement.
“In Seattle, we recognize that our 911 dispatchers are the first, first responders taking hundreds of thousands of calls. When any resident or business calls the 911 emergency line, it is our dispatchers who are available 24/7 to answer calls. Thanks to these new hiring incentives, we are able to recruit and train more dedicated professionals to help residents in crisis and help to dispatch the right response. We are moving quickly to immediately recruit the best of the best to serve as 911 dispatchers in Seattle,” said Mayor Jenny A. Durkan…
by AllThingsECC.com | Nov 4, 2021 | Comm Center News
TULSA, Oklahoma – A Tulsa man is charged in a hit-and-run crash that killed a 911 dispatcher.
27-year-old Cody Carrell is charged with manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident.
Investigators say Carrell ran a red light in October near Admiral and Utica, and t-boned Mary Byers, a 911 dispatcher.
Officers say Carrell took off after the crash, but eventually turned himself in… READ MORE
by AllThingsECC.com | Nov 4, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
During a mass shooting, the ECC will be overwhelmed with calls. There will be calls from persons involved in the incident, friends and family of those affected, and potentially the shooter. The telecommunicator must process calls quickly to obtain as much information as possible.
Everyone knows the most crucial piece of information in any call is the location. For mass shootings, this means more than just the location of the incident. Responders need to know the exact location of the shooter. Obtain location within locations. If the caller indicates the shooter is in the breakroom, ask where the breakroom is inside the building. An updated location of the shooter is also essential. As officers enter the location, they need to know where the shooter is in the building…
by AllThingsECC.com | Nov 4, 2021 | Articles, Comm Center News
4.9 GHz
As many are aware, last year the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decided public safety was not making sufficient use of the 50 MHz of spectrum in the 4.9-GHz band the Commission had made available to the public-safety community for Wi-Fi-type services starting in 2002.
The FCC’s idea was to assign the spectrum to each state and each state could then award a master lease for the spectrum. The successful leaseholder would then be able to determine how the spectrum would be used within that state, and supposedly protect existing public-safety users of the spectrum.
The Public Safety Spectrum Alliance (PSSA) filed a number of comments and then filed a request for stay to prevent the FCC from moving forward with its intended plan. In 2021, the new FCC implemented the stay order and to a limited extent, began permitting public safety to once again license systems for use in the 4.9-GHz band…
by ECC Editor | Nov 4, 2021 | Comm Center News
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The Madison County 911 Center is looking to hire more call takers.
These call takers would work side by side with dispatchers but would not actually be dispatchers. Call takers are the first person people hear when they call 911.
“You gotta be able to multitask, you gotta be able to listen and type at the same time while taking accurate details of what’s going on,” said Huntsville Police Sgt. Ricky Stephen. “With the shortage, it’s creating extended call times, so what we’re trying to do, we’re trying to get people in here to be the first ones to answer those phones, get that accurate information and to get it to other agencies as quickly as possible and get help where it’s needed… READ MORE
by ECC Editor | Nov 4, 2021 | Comm Center News
The City of Alexandria, Virginia, is set to flip the switch on 911 technology that aims to help pinpoint the location of cellphone users, and quickly provide health information to assist first responders before they arrive on an emergency scene.
On Wednesday, the Alexandria Emergency Communication Center, which handles 911 calls for police, fire and medical emergencies, will launch a new cloud-based system called RapidDeploy RadiusPlus Mapping.
The new system aims to greatly reduce the amount of time it takes to learn the location of people calling 911 from a cellphone, rather than a landline… READ MORE
